I want to go to there
By Elizabeth Shaw
I recently completed an imaginary poll* of first-time visitors to Lynn Family stadium for a Racing Louisville or Lou City game.
*Okay, this was actually based on qualitative data from friends and family who visited Lynn Family stadium for a ‘24 Racing or Lou City game. It’s just as accurate as President Trump saying “everything’s computer” about the inside of a Tesla.
Their top reactions were split as such:
40% were just wowed by the amazing stadium. It is pretty Wow.
30% were excited to see their favorite players in action and maybe get an autograph. Since this is my 5th time being a season ticket holder, Lauren Milliet has signed pretty much everything in my house except my fridge because security wouldn’t let me bring it into the stadium.
10% were hoping to run into Jack Harlow (and did!), since the Louisville native is a part-owner and attends games of both teams.
5% of you have noticed this doesn’t total 100%…see above for poll accuracy levels.
10% were all about the Ehrler’s ice cream.
If I imaginary polled kids everywhere about their favorite part of any sporting event, they would 103% say “THE FOOD” because who under eight doesn’t love popcorn, nachos, ice cream…basically all the non-vegetable food groups that really love to shine at ballparks, arenas and stadiums everywhere?
Consider the Yum! Center, where UofL, the 13th ranked NCAA men’s basketball team, plays, coached by the ACC Coach of the year, Pat Kelsey. (As a Louisville, KY resident and UofL alumni, I am legally obligated to mention this team three times in every media piece and social media post from here to eternity, amen.) Our friends, Susan & Rick, love to host friends and family as they are long-time season ticket holders. Last week, after we watched U of L (that’s 2) pound on Cal for two glorious halves of basketball, I asked Susan how the grandkids were enjoying the games. She said they are all about the food. Her two oldest, Lincoln (4) and Carter (3), have already discovered the ice cream and require it at every game. Well played, young Cardinals.
And travel back in the time with me to the days of the Louisville Redbirds baseball team (before they were the Bats). If this minor league club was playing a home game at Louisville Redbird Stadium circa 1985, you would be sure to see my sister, Emily, and me sitting in the stands, ignoring the game while we devoured ice cream from tiny plastic baseball helmets before moving on to nachos or popcorn.
So, for children and grown men everywhere, the usual ballgame staples at Lynn Family stadium are “chef’s kiss”. There are also specialty concessions if you want tacos, burgers, or alcoholic drinks, but people don’t usually drink at ballgames. (Pause for laughter.) For the fan who prefers something beyond the usual 2000-cal ballpark snack, Lynn Family has introduced and reinvented several items for the 2025 season. Michael and I were super excited to eat some free food (and Michael’s specialty is judging), so here are the rankings of the food we sampled tonight.
The images below align with the rankings, left to right, top to bottom. Bonus photo is Jonathan Lintner, VP of Marketing & Communications for Racing Louisville & Lou City, pictured with Levy Head Chef Mark Heil.
The yummiest thing I’ve eaten all week was the Vegan Crunch Wrap. While this has been available previously at Lynn, it was likely just a vegan wrap. This year, it will be served on the concourse, made to order, crunch included at no extra cost. Don’t worry if you’ve never heard of soy-rizo - if you can imagine eating a flavorful beef-bean-cheese quesadilla, then you can appreciate the deliciousness of this creation. Oh, and there’s tomatillo dipping sauce on the side that can totally skip if you want. Michael only ranked this at 2, despite giving it a “big thumbs up.”
A very close 2nd was the inspired Funky Lou, a brilliant take on the sloppy joe. I don’t know where pimento cheese was hiding all my life, probably somewhere all alone being yucky, but pair it with harissa-seasoned sloppy joe and look out! This was Michael’s fave.
Let’s jump to dessert! But I would call the S’mores Nachos an “adults-only” dessert because (a) it would sell better and (b) you really don’t want your kids eating this unless you’re the type of parent who has wet wipes on their person at all times. This was a yummy, sticky mess of cinnamon crisps with chocolate sauce and toasted marshmallows. I ate the marshmallows, then the crisps, and left the chocolate for the racoons who will feast tonight outside the stadium.
The Honey Sriracha Chicken Sandwich was a’ight. I hope I spelled that right; I’m trying to sound like someone cool enough to eat sriracha because my vanilla palette is very anti-spice. The honey definitely tamed it, but I’d take a #1 from Chik Fil a everyday and twice on Sunda- never mind.
I think it’s hard to dress up a hot dog. (Is that where the saying “put lipstick on a pig” comes from? If not, it should.) I appreciate the idea of adding cream cheese as a condiment for the Derby City Dog, but at the end of the day, I’d rather have a corndog. (Ed. I enjoyed it, but it definitely was due to the “dog” and not necessarily the extras.)
Here I’m going to drop in the BBQ Nachos that Michael ranked #4. He said these had a “good kick” and that you could just skip the jalapenos if you want less spicy nachos. I skipped this one altogether because it combines several of my least favorite foods into one messy pile - shredded pork (nope), BBQ sauce (extra no), and house kettle chips (why when we have Lays?).
Now for the Drinks! They were definitely higher than #7 but here we are. The Porch Swing by Rivergreen should come with a giant warning label that his innocent looking 12 oz can is 12 percent alocohol and will kick your butt. (Ask Michael.)
The Racing players help choose the blackberry-blueberry flavor of the Top Bins Hard Seltzer and it was pretty good for a seltzer. Where I will usually try two sips, I managed to get down four of this one.
Why did I abandon the seltzer so quickly, you ask? I was excited to try to Capri Sun-looking drink, AmiracleAde. This will be amazing on a hot day if I can remember the name of it, and the label makes it look like it has Vitamin C or D or maybe Z. Sold!
This Saturday, you will find me on the Concourse with the vegan crunch wraps. Remember, all of these items are only available at Lynn Family stadium, right down the road from where the UofL men’s basketball team (that’s 3) just wrapped up their regular season.
People Can't Stop Saying "Everything's Computer" Because Of Donald Trump
Michael’s PSA
DO NOT DRINK A PORCH SWING BY RIVERGREEN AT LAST CALL!
I don’t drink a ton, but don’t consider myself a lightweight either. However, I had two Porch Swings and Elizabeth had to drive home and I am still buzzing at almost 10 pm when I finished off my second at 7:30.
